


the one who didn’t

by helsinkibaby



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Community: 1-million-words, F/M, Fluff, Het, One Who Got Away, Romance, old crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:33:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24543904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helsinkibaby/pseuds/helsinkibaby
Summary: Noelani’s “one who got away” turns up in Hawaii but Steve’s not jealous.
Relationships: Junior Reigns/Tani Rey, Noelani Cunha/Steve McGarrett
Comments: 2
Kudos: 23
Collections: 1 Million Words' Weekend Challenge





	the one who didn’t

**Author's Note:**

> For the weekend challenge. The prompt I used was “a characters old crush shows up.” I was going to flesh out the “Catherine Returns” scenario I’ve been noodling with but then someone put an Oded Fehr picspam up on tumblr ... if you’re wondering what Nick looks like, that would be who!

“And you’re not jealous? Like not even a little bit jealous?” 

Steve fought, not for the first time and surely not for the last when dealing with Danny, the impulse to bang his head very hard on his desk. “No. I am not jealous,” he said. 

“I’m just saying.” Danny was talking with his hands, as always. “If my girlfriend was spending the evening having a cosy dinner date with a guy who was her ex, I would be a little jealous.”

“He’s not her ex.” Because Noelani had been very clear about that. This Nicholas guy who was visiting the island for a medical conference had just been one of her mentors during her residency. (He thought of how things had worked out with a different mentor and his stomach twisted. Noelani still wasn’t quite over that one.) “They’re just two old colleagues who are catching up. Nothing more to it than that.” 

“Are you sure? Because you don’t find it so easy to share your toys and, you know, if you wanted to go with them, we can cover for you.” That was said with an expansive sweep of his hand, meant to cover the rest of the team. When Steve’s gaze followed the sweep, he couldn’t miss how everyone was suddenly looking anywhere but at his office - it was amazing, he thought, that any of them ever succeeded at undercover work. 

“I’m not going to tag along on their dinner like I’m some paranoid lunatic-” He might have paused there, given Danny a particularly pointed look “-who doesn’t trust his girlfriend. I trust her, okay?” 

Danny lifted an eyebrow. “I didn’t say you shouldn’t trust her.” There was a lot of weight on the last word and Steve got the implication straight away. Danny did not do subtle. 

“You’re saying I shouldn’t trust him?” 

“I’m saying Noelani is a beautiful woman, who is accomplished and intelligent and who could have, frankly, any man she wanted. And there are plenty of men out there who can see that.” 

An uncomfortable prickle ran along the back of Steve’s neck, although he wasn’t quite sure why. “I know that.” 

“Good.” Danny nodded. “Just making sure.” 

There was something Steve was missing, he just knew it. Before he could probe any deeper, however, his cell phone buzzed. Tilting it towards him, he saw Noelani’s face on the screen and he felt himself smile before he could stop it. He read the text message, ignored Danny’s smirk at his reaction. “That’s Noelani. They’re on their way up.” He stood, slid his phone into his back pocket. “Behave.” 

Danny’s jaw dropped. “When do I do anything else?” he demanded and that was a question Steve wasn’t going to touch with a ten foot pole. 

He’d hoped to meet them at the elevator but Noelani was already walking in the door by the time Steve joined the rest of the team gathered around the table. Once again, he found himself smiling at the mere sight of her, a little more dressed up than he usually saw her in his office. With a day off and no crime scene emergency, she was in a light summer dress in a dark shade of blue, her hair loose around her shoulders, face lightly made up. Her face lit up in a smile when her eyes met his and he didn’t think twice about closing the distance between them, dropping his hand onto her hip and his lips onto hers. “I would have come down to you,” he said as he straightened up and she shrugged. 

“I didn’t want to disturb you if you guys were in the middle of chasing down a lead...” She looked past him to the rest of the team, probably gauging their level of urgency, or in this case, the lack thereof. Their case was going nowhere in a hurry and the opportunity to clap eyes on Noelani’s not quite ex was something that, apparently, no one could pass up. 

Danny’s sentiments of earlier could have been the catalyst, or he might have said it anyway but when his fingers found hers and he squeezed gently and told her, “I always have time for you,” Steve meant every word. 

Her smile both brightened and softened when he said that and she squeezed his fingers just a little tighter. Then she turned around, gestured to the man behind her. “Steve, this is Nicholas Cohen.” 

Steve held out his hand, even if he was a little taken aback because the man standing in front of him was nothing like the man he’d been expecting. As tall as Steve himself - actually maybe even an inch taller - he had a similar build too, trim and muscular. He looked to be a little older than Steve, hair and beard both already turned silver, but his handshake was firm, given with a smile, his whole demeanour friendly and relaxed as he said, “Nick, please.” 

“Good to meet you, Nick,” Steve said. “How’s Hawaii treating you so far?” 

“It’s beautiful.” It wasn’t lost on Steve that he was looking right at Noelani as he spoke. “Even boring medical conferences don’t seem as bad when they’re set in paradise.” 

“I’ll bet.” Steve had had to sit through more than one law enforcement conference, he figured these things were pretty much universal in their boringness. “Nice to get away and see some of the sights.” 

“Noelani’s proving an excellent guide.” Something about the warm smile Nick sent her way had Steve’s gut clenching. He could almost feel Danny’s eyes boring into his back. 

He ignored it in favour of smiling down at her. “I’m sure.” The smile he got in return was worth it. “Where did you decide to eat?” 

“A colleague recommended a place to me, Hy’s?” Nick said it casually but Steve didn’t have to be told that that was one of Noelani’s favourite restaurants. Nor did he miss how she grinned broadly at the mention of the place. “Luckily they could fit us in.” 

“Yeah and we should probably get going; traffic’s going to be brutal this time of day...” Noelani glanced at her watch and Steve fought very hard not to tell her that he’d drive them and, what the hell, he’d join them for dinner. It was not easy. “I’ll see you later?” 

He leaned in and kissed her, just like he would if she’d stopped by on her day off, just like he would if there weren’t a nest of poisonous vipers twisting around in the pit of his stomach. “Most definitely,” he assured her, squeezing her hand one more time before watching her walk out of the Palace, Nick by her side, his hand hovering over the small of her back as he opened the door for her. 

Steve clenched his jaw so tightly he was surprised he didn’t break a tooth. 

Turning around, he saw that once again, the team were looking anywhere but at him. All but Danny, whose expression was almost sympathetic. Steve held up one finger before he could speak. “Not a word.” 

He went into his office and sat down at his desk, thankful that the office doors didn’t slam. 

*

“So... you and Steve.” 

Noelani wasn’t entirely surprised when Nick finally brought up the subject. Upon leaving the Palace, he’d asked her about the statue outside and she’d ended up telling him more about King Kamehameha and the history of the building than he’d ever really wanted to know. Then over dinner, it had been conversation about people they’d worked with, where they were now, some good natured complaining about the conference he was attending. 

But she’d known he was holding something back. 

“How long have you two been together?” he asked and she couldn’t help but smile as she answered. 

“A little over nine months,” she told him. “We knew each other for a long time before that, we were friends... and then one day...” She shrugged, not really wanting to go into the specifics and his smile was quiet. 

“And then one day you weren’t.” He held her gaze and she felt a shiver run down her spine. “Sounds familiar.” 

Noelani sucked in a deep breath, fingers playing with the stem of her water glass. She wished she’d given into temptation, ordered something stronger, but no, she’d insisted she was driving. She could always call Steve to pick her up, she thought, but she pushed that thought away before it could take root - depending on how this conversation went, Steve shouldn’t be anywhere near it. “Nick...”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.” He held up his hand and she knew him well enough to know it wasn’t an act. “It’s just... do you ever wonder... if we’d made a different choice that night...”

She knew the night he was referring to, of course she did. One night at a colleague’s wedding where they’d laughed a little too much, danced a little too long and at the end of the night it would have been so easy for them to take that next step, for her to kiss him or him to kiss her and let the feelings that she’d been studiously ignoring take control. The fact that she was one hundred percent sure those feelings were reciprocated - and that was before his hand had slid down her back as he walked her to her hotel room - hadn’t made it any easier to make the choice she’d made, the opposite in fact. 

She didn’t regret it, she never had. 

But she did wonder. 

“Sometimes,” she told him honestly. “But I was a resident... you were one of my supervisors. And I know it was never...” She searched for the right words. “You were never inappropriate with me. But the way things were... it would have been a bad idea.” 

“They would have said you were trying to sleep your way to the top,” Nick agreed. “And depending on who you asked, I’d have been the predatory older man, or the fool who put his whole career at risk.” He shook his head. “And nothing would have been further from the truth.” He raised his own water glass - he’d declined alcohol in sympathy to her - and took a slow sip. 

“Do you?” she asked, and god, she didn’t know why she was saying that. “Wonder?”

“Occasionally.” His lips tilted up at the corners. “Coming out here, a little more maybe. If I’m honest... I’ve been doing some thinking since my divorce came through last year... about relationships... the one that got away...” She felt her jaw drop and he shrugged. “I thought perhaps...” He stopped, smiled. “But then I saw you and Steve together. He obviously makes you very happy.”

Noelani nodded, surprised that her throat was tight. “He does.” 

“And it’s quite clear that he adores you.” She must have looked surprised because he laughed. “What, you didn’t see his face when we walked into his office? Lit up like a child at Christmas.” Noelani felt her cheeks flush, part embarrassment, mostly pleasure. “I would never want to come between you and your happiness, Noelani. I want you to know that.” 

That, at least, she did know. “I do.” 

“Good.” He smiled at her for a long moment then leaned in closer to her. “Now... what’s this you mentioned once about knowing the inspiration for the White Knight books?” 

The rest of the evening passed with smiles and easy conversation, but Nick insisted on getting a cab back to his hotel and, considering the conversation they’d had, Noelani didn’t push the issue. Nick kissed her cheek and bid her good night but she didn’t go back to her place. 

Instead she pulled in beside a blue Silverado truck and made her way up the path to Steve’s house. 

The front door was rarely locked but she knocked anyway, smiling when Junior answered the door. He looked a little flushed, shirt a little rumpled so Noelani wasn’t surprised in the least when she stepped into the room and Tani was sitting on the couch, fingers running over her hair like she was smoothing it down. 

Noelani shot her a knowing grin, regretting it when she got an equally knowing one in return. “Is Steve here?” she asked because his truck was outside, but there was no way Junior was making out on the couch with Tani if Steve was going to walk in on them. 

“He’s outside.” Tani paused, deliberately, a twinkle in her eyes. “Brooding.” 

Something twisted deep in the pit of Noelani’s stomach. “Why would he be brooding?”

Tani looked like she couldn’t believe she took the bait. Neither could Noelani. She was far too sober for this. “Maybe because he just found you have a type?” Tani asked her. Noelani frowned and she continued, “You know, tall dark and handsome... maybe with a bit of silver fox thrown in?” Junior was looking between the two of them like he’d rather be anywhere else. “Come on, you can’t tell me you never noticed the similarities between McGarrett and Nick.” 

Noelani shook her head. “No,” she said simply and Tani rolled her eyes. 

“Unbelievable... trust me, Nick is what Steve’s gonna look like in ten years. Junes, tell me I’m wrong.” 

Junior held his hands up helplessly and from the glare Tani gave him, Noelani hoped he enjoyed their little makeout session because it didn’t look like it was going to resume any time soon. 

“There was never anything between Nick and me... Steve knows that.” 

“It’s one thing to know that,” Tani said. “But if you ask me, McGarrett heard the word ‘Doctor’ and was expecting a George... but you walked in with McDreamy.” 

Junior was staring at her, mouth agape. “I don’t know what that means.” 

When Noelani shook her head as well, Tani threw her hands up. She looked like she was an inch away from storming out which Noelani wouldn’t actually mind because then she could go out to Steve and he would hold her and the world would make sense again. “Grey’s Anatomy?”

“I don’t watch medical shows. They always get the details wrong. Apart from ‘er’, that one’s okay.” When Tani looked askance at her, Noelani crossed her arms over her chest. “Do you look at cop shows to unwind?” 

She took the way Tani inclined her head as her conceding the point. “Then, in words you can understand, Steve was expecting Anthony Edwards, and George Clooney walked in.” 

That one, Noelani understood. “You’re saying Steve is jealous. Of Nick.” 

“Hello? His girlfriend walks in with her smoking hot ex who’s obviously still into her... of course he’s jealous. And brooding. Oh my god, so much brooding.” 

Noelani looked at Junior, hoping for some calm in the midst of Tani’s insanity. She got it, but not the way she was expecting. “He’s definitely jealous,” Junior confirmed, and for Junior to roll on the man he idolised told her exactly how jealous he must have been. “And they do look kind of alike.”

Tani looked delighted and Noelani dropped her head, pinched the bridge of her nose. Tossing her purse onto one of the armchairs, she took a deep breath and left the two of them to it, heading out to the lawn chairs and Steve. 

Eddie was lying beside him and his head perked up when he sensed Noelani coming. He trotted over to greet her before he made his way back to the house, evidently wanting to give them some privacy. Noelani watched him go and by the time she turnd back to the chairs, Steve was already standing, staring at her like she was the best thing he’d ever seen. 

The look on his face made her heart skip a beat. 

“Hey... good night?” 

“It just got better.” She didn’t have to think about her answer, just like she didn’t have to think about walking up to him, putting her arms around his waist and letting her head fall against his chest. He chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her, his chin on top of her head, swaying her from side to side exaggeratedly. 

Then he pulled back slightly, just enough so that he could look down at her, not enough to break any contact between their bodies. “I wasn’t sure if you’d come over,” he said and she lifted an eyebrow. 

“Tani says you were brooding. Care to comment?” 

Steve pressed his lips together, fixed his gaze somewhere up and over her head. “It is possible... that when I saw you and Nick together, I may have got a little jealous.” He continued quickly, words almost tripping over themselves in his haste to get them out, “And it’s not because I don’t trust you, I do, one hundred percent. This is all me; you know... turns out I’m selfish.” He shrugged. “If a guy’s gonna be taking you out, you looking like that... I want the guy to be me.” 

For Steve to admit something like that knocked the breath out of Noelani - he’d be the first to admit that he wasn’t always the most forthcoming with his feelings. She opened her mouth to tell him he had nothing to worry about. What came out instead was, “I told you nothing ever happened between me and Nick.” 

The furrows on his brow deepened ever so slightly. “Yeah?” 

“I told you the truth about that. Nothing ever did happen. But...” Her voice trailed off, unsure of how to continue.

Except Steve, knowing her like he did, got there first. “But you both wanted it to.” Her face must have shown her surprise because he smiled as he ran a finger down her cheek. “I had a feeling when you talked about him... and I knew for sure when I saw him looking at you.” 

“I didn’t...” she began. “I would never...”

“I know.” He moved his hands to cup her cheeks, brought his lips to hers in a soft, gentle kiss. “Noelani, I know, okay? And I meant what I said... I trust you.” 

“So you’re not mad at me?” 

“How can I be mad?” He kissed her again, a little longer this time. “Nothing happened...” A kiss to her cheek. “It was a long time ago...” A kiss to her other cheek. “And if he’s still carrying a torch... well, I can’t blame him for having great taste...”  


She giggled at that, fell into his arms again, closed her eyes and held onto him tightly. “Besides,” he murmured, “you come home to me. That’s what matters.” 

“Always.” She felt his hands move over her hair and she sighed in contentment. She wasn’t thinking of the one who got away; all her attention was on the one who didn’t. 

And so, she knew, was Steve’s.


End file.
